


Support

by silentexplorer18



Series: In Feeling There is Strength: The Tears Series [3]
Category: Riverdale (TV 2017)
Genre: Arguments, Betty Does Serpent Dance, Breakup, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Friendship, Gen, Grudges, Making Up, Mild Language, Whyte Wrym, emotional restraint, serpent dance, southside serpents
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-04
Updated: 2020-03-04
Packaged: 2021-02-23 07:20:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,520
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23007811
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/silentexplorer18/pseuds/silentexplorer18
Summary: After crashing on Sweet Pea's couch, you now start on the task of trying to become a Southside Serpent while simultaneously avoiding one Jughead Jones.  However, some old habits just can't be broken, especially if they'd be broken over petty grudges.
Relationships: Betty Cooper/Jughead Jones, Jughead Jones & Reader
Series: In Feeling There is Strength: The Tears Series [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1653502
Kudos: 20





	Support

**Author's Note:**

> This is Part 3 of my series _In Feeling There Is Strength: The Tears Series_. You do not need to read any of the other parts if you don't want to, but if you'd like to know more about what happens before or after this point, feel free to check out the rest of the series!

The rules of joining the Serpents weren’t hard to memorize, not after years of helping FP Jones. He may have been in prison, but the Serpents still welcomed you with open arms.

Unfortunately, you weren’t the only one they welcomed.

There couldn’t just be one Jones involved in the gang, and until the King returned, new leadership needed to be put in place. The obvious solution was to induct the Prince.

But you were smart. They were impressed with how clever and resourceful you were, and they recognized you from working with FP over the years, helping him with occasional community activities as need be. Even though you hadn’t been a part of the gang, you knew the inner workings well enough to be extremely useful. You were the unofficial princess, and the fact that you avoided the Prince at all cost grated on his nerves.

He never came around with Betty, and for that you were grateful. You had every reason to believe she was a lovely person, but just the sight of her made your hands start to shake and sent a wave of hurt through your chest.

But you  _ didn’t  _ cry.

After that night in the woods, you hadn’t permitted yourself to cry. It was weak of you. It was selfish. You had more important things to do than shed tears.

One such activity was visiting your mom. Sometimes Sweet Pea or Fangs would take you on their motorcycles. Other times, Toni would come with you. Your mom wasn’t doing well – severe head trauma rarely goes over without issue – and as far as you’d heard, you were the only one coming to see her. You doubted it helped much; she’d always held a soft spot for your younger sister, not you. However, you tried to come offer your presence at the hospital as much as your school and work schedule would allow. The doctors seemed to think you being around would help her.

She was unresponsive – brain swelling and severe trauma can do that – but alive, so you counted your good fortune. The police, on the other hand, had yet to clear your house. It was still a crime scene. You couldn’t enter. By now, though, you’d realized your father and brother must have pulled their belongings from the house before the police had closed it off.

You hadn’t seen either of them in weeks.

At least you had your friends, though. Sweet Pea was still letting you crash on his couch, and Toni had been nice enough to lend you a few clothes until your paycheck came and you could obtain some of your own. They’d been lifesavers, and their words continued to play through your mind.

_ No Serpent stands alone. _

You were draped over a stool at the bar, sipping a glass of water as you talked to Toni. “But how do I do the dance without looking like a clutz?”

“You won’t! You just have to be confident in the moves you’re doing.”

“I’m not that sexy—”

“The boys are gonna be  _ drooling  _ on the floor for you!”

You laughed, rolling your eyes.

“What’s up?” Fangs asked, hopping onto the seat beside you.

Toni passed him a soda, rolling her eyes. “She’s just freaking out about the Serpent dance.”

“Scared you’re gonna fall off the stage?” he laughed. He was quick to quiet when neither you nor Toni laughed along with him. “ _Come_ _on_ , you don’t need to worry about something like that! You’re gonna do great!”

“She thinks she won’t be sexy enough.”

“No way! You could have almost any guy in the bar that you wanted! Just take your pick.”

You shook your head, pushing the glass back toward Toni. “Keyword:  _ almost _ .”

“Ooh is there someone you’re already into?” Toni’s grin was devilish as she leaned against the bar, fully curious now. Fangs quirked a brow.

“There was this guy once. But he doesn’t feel that way about me, so it doesn’t really matter.”

“Who?”

Shaking your head, you turned toward the door, face falling as you watched Jughead enter the room. “Doesn’t matter,” you mumbled, glancing away from the boy.

“It’s him, isn’t it?” Toni hissed, leaning over the bar to hold your attention.

The subtlest of nods was your only answer.

Jughead’s voice floated over your shoulder. “Hey, let’s take a walk. I need to talk to you.”

“How ‘bout we don’t and say we did?” you offered, voice coming out far more put together than you were feeling. Shooting a glance over at Toni, the silent message you’d see her later, you turned toward the door and walked away.

“Hey, Jones,” Toni said, pulling Jughead’s attention away from you. “Any updates on the Red and Black’s case?”

He stopped, turning to answer her question.

Thank goodness for small miracles. You weren’t ready to deal with him yet.

* * *

Jughead tried four more times to speak to you over the next week, but you always found ways to circumvent his attempts. Whether it be the boys distracting him or Toni dragging you off to “practice secret girl things,” you were always pulled away from him thanks to your friends’ persistence.

On a better note, the Serpent dance was coming up, and your continual practice seemed to be paying off. However, there was still one person you needed to talk to about it. Thankfully, he’d been released from prison just in time.

You knocked on his office door in the Wyrm, poking your head around the doorframe with a smile. “Mr. Jones? You have a minute?”

He gave you a wide smile, turning in his chair to face you. “How many times do I have to tell you to call me FP?” he chuckled. “Of course I have time for you. What can I do?”

You came to sit on the chair in his office, fidgeting with the hem of your sleeve. “I want to join the Serpents.”

“You want– Why?”

Pulling your hair from your eyes, you sent him the most genuinely vulnerable look you’d shown someone else in a long time. “I need a family, FP. And I think the Serpents have been the closest thing I’ve had to a family in a really long time. I need that.”

“What happened to your parents?” He knew your blood family hadn’t been the best, figured that out from late night screaming matches and Ghoulie meetings, but news of your family’s situation hadn’t passed to him in jail.

“I don’t know. They… mom fell. She’s in critical condition – brain damage. I haven’t seen my dad or brother in, I dunno, almost two weeks.”

FP’s face fell with your words. He hadn’t known, hadn’t expected. “Have you started the tests already?”

“I need to do the dance.”

“Tomorrow?” He already had one on the list. It would be easy to add you, too.

You nodded. Tomorrow. You were ready for this. You  _ needed  _ this. Without realizing it, you bit the end of your thumb, mind traveling back to  _ why  _ you needed to join the Serpents, what that would mean for you.

“Is there something else bothering you?” FP asked gently, jarring you from your thoughts.

“Oh, no. No, I’m fine,” you lied. Guilt bubbled in your chest, pain and betrayal still a whirlwind in your stomach as you thought of Jughead Jones, your once upon a time best friend. “Just a little nervous is all.”

* * *

“You’re  _ so  _ hot!” Toni squealed, as you stood before her in the black lingerie she’d let you borrow.

“So red or black?” you asked, admiring yourself in the mirror. The red had looked cool, but the black really made you look sexy, especially with the black boots Toni’s cousin had lent you.

“Black,  _ obviously _ ,” she rolled her eyes, grabbing some eyeliner and lipstick to help you with. “Jughead’s gonna regret  _ a lot _ when he sees you tonight.”

You snorted, ignoring the pang that phrase sent through your chest. “I doubt it.”

“But you’re so sexy!”

You rolled your eyes, ignoring Toni’s squeal when you almost messed up the wet eyeliner. “If he wanted a snake, he would’ve found one. He wants the girl next door. A  _ good _ girl, Toni.”

“You  _ are  _ a good girl! You barely qualify as bad—”

“But I’ve been a Southside girl my whole life. I’m  _ almost  _ a snake. He doesn’t want that.”

“How do  _ you  _ know what he wants?”

“I’ve known him for forever.”

She scoffed, moving back to inspect her handiwork. “Well I don’t think anyone could resist this. Now come on!” She tossed you a tee shirt and a pair of jeans. “Put these on so we can get going.”

* * *

Fangs and Sweet Pea greeted you with warm smiles, perched on chairs at the edge of the bar. “You ready?” Fangs asked, sending you a grin.

Looking around, you saw the glow of familiar faces, the support you always wanted to have that your parents never gave. “Yeah,” you smiled, “I think I am.”

Toni dragged you backstage not long after, helping you strip and prepare for your dance.

FP gave a speech, of which you heard very little. Honestly, you were trying to focus, but the nervousness buzzed in your ears like white noise, silencing any intelligible sounds that came your way. Apparently FP introduced you. You couldn’t hear it over the roar in your ears, but followed Toni’s lead when she gently nudged you onto the stage.

And then you did it. Hips swirling around the pole, you had no idea how you’d managed to be so coordinated, but the whistles the boys sent your way was enough to build your confidence. You were smiling, smirking up at your friends as you bent low, legs spreading out wide before you pulled yourself up against the pole. You belonged here.

As the music ended, cheers erupted all around you, and if it weren’t for FP climbing back on the stage, it sounded like the noise would never end. He raised his hand, silencing the group, and tossing you a leather jacket. “Welcome to the family,” he smiled, giving you a side hug. The screams of approval made you both chuckle.

You were beaming, pulling the leather jacket around your shoulders. Catching Toni’s eye, you laughed – the first purely happy laugh you’d made in a while – and rushed backstage again to pull on your jeans and go meet the boys.

However, you froze momentarily when FP’s voice reached your ears. “We have one more dancer to see tonight. Give it up for Betty Cooper!”

Buttoning up your pants, you grabbed Toni’s arm and rushed around the side into the audience. Sure enough, Betty Cooper was twirling around a pole in lingerie, sultry gaze trailing over the crowd. You shot a glance at Jughead. Shock. He was in shock.

But nobody else seemed to be. The men were whistling, pleased with any show they could get, and Betty was certainly putting one on.

As it ended, Betty smiled, and cheers erupted from the crowd. You weaved your way over to Fangs and Sweet Pea, Toni in tow behind you, and they offered you smiles and pats on the back at your success. The air was stifling, though. The room was too hot after so much physical exertion, and you needed a minute to cool down.

“I’m just gonna go for a quick walk outside!” you shouted to your friends over the roar of conversation. They nodded, and you whirled on your heel, making your way out into fresh, crisp air.

That was much better.

Until it wasn’t.

Betty was standing in front of Jughead, concerned expression forcing her lips into a pout.

“Why would you do that?” You couldn’t see Jughead’s face, but you could hear the tone in his voice. He was upset.

“I wanted to be a part of this,” she elaborated. “The Serpents, your world—”

“Why?”

You winced, wanting to turn on your heel and leave but not quite being able to. A motorcycle whizzed by and you took a step to avoid it, thinking back to all the times you’d envied Jug for getting out – partially, but  _ still  _ – from the Southside.

“— we’ll figure this out together.” She reached for him, and he pushed back.

“No. Not together.”

He shook his head, and the pit in your stomach deepened. You turned back toward the building, moving out of earshot. You weren’t going to stop him. No, that wasn’t your job. It was his life, his  _ choice  _ how to live it. You could pick up his pieces, but you couldn’t stop him from breaking himself apart.

He turned, walking away from her outstretched hand. His face was agony but his stance was determined. He’d made his choice.

With a few more steps, his eyes, cloudy with hurt, met yours. They shot away as quickly as they’d met you; he’d finally figured out you weren’t very fond of his company.

Betty had walked off down the street out of sight, and despite all those weeks of torture, of mistrust, you closed the gap between you and Jughead in a few short steps.

“What?” he bit, the sound rough against his lips. “Come to rub salt in the wound?”

You pulled him around the side of the building, shadows keeping you hidden from those exiting the Wyrm. “I’m sorry,” you said, wrapping your arms around him in a hug he’d never asked for but nonetheless needed. “I’m sorry. You didn’t deserve it.”

His weight was quick to fall on you, all familiarity and no malice breaking his walls. Tomorrow he could hate you, go back to holding a grudge, but tonight he needed the comfort of someone being there, someone not judging him for all his mistakes. “My dad was supposed to retire,” he mumbled, the words coming out muffled against your shoulder.

“As hard as this is,” you whispered back, “this is what dads are supposed to do. They help when you need it.” You pulled back, brushing the stray tears from his cheeks. “You may be a leader, but that doesn’t mean you’ll never make mistakes. Especially with things like this.”

“I just need to fix everything, and I can’t do that with her—”

“You can fix things tomorrow. When your head’s on straight. These things take time.” Your eyes were glassy, just a touch, the product of weeks of chipping at your strong resolve. But you didn’t cry. You still couldn’t. Not with someone else around. Not with Jughead around. “I know you love her.” He tried to scoff, but it came out as more of an undignified snuffle. “It’s okay. She deserves it, your love. She cares about you. I just hope you find your way back to her before it’s too late.” You nudged him, pulling him back toward his motorcycle. “Now come on, let’s go home.”

“Home?” he shot you a quizzical glance.

You smiled. “I think Sweet Pea can handle one night without me crashing on his couch. I’d hate for the Jones men to get lonely without their favorite cook around.”

Jughead’s laugh was sudden but not unwelcome. “Cookies would be nice.”

“Cookies it is.”

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! I hope you enjoyed! You can also find me over on [Tumblr](https://silentexplorer18.tumblr.com/) if you'd like.


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